a briljant little book full of life lessons and a course to a happy way of viewing life, Lovely in it's simplicity about such a complex subject as overal happiness, In my topof alltime favorite books! “Hello there! Arent you Winnie the Pooh Im a big fan, ”
“Yes I am, How do you know me” Asked Pooh,
“There have been many books written about you and your friends, The most recent one is about how you are a western Taoist, ”
“Oh. ”
“A western what”
“Taoist” I said, “its very hard to explain, Im no expert, In fact the whole book was about the author trying to explain it to you, and you would say “oh.
”
“Oh. ” Said Pooh.
“From what I understand you are an uncarved block, ”
“Oh” said Pooh,
“An uncarved what”
“I know, I dont entirely get it either, “ I said”something about how you are not very smart, therefore you dont over think things like Rabbit, ”
“Oh” said Pooh,
“You enjoy the day and blow off any important things you really should be doing, and listen to the birds chirp simply because its a nice day.
” I said “in Taoism procrastination is good, my kind of philosophy, But Im sure its more complicated than that, ”
“Oh. ” Said Pooh.
“I was about to go get some honey, its my favorite thing, ” Said Pooh “would you like some, . uh. . what is your name”
“Stephanie, and thanks Pooh, I would love some, ”
What this little book made me want to do is read the Winnie the Pooh books by A.
A. Milne. I wonder if he was trying to write these stories to illustrate Taoist philosophies, if so, he was more of a genius than I previously thought.
Cute book, I listened to the audio version and it was well read,
This is my favorite book to give as a gift, Benjamin Hoff has brought the loved characters from theacre wood amp explains principles Taoism in a way that is endearing as well as simplistic.
From the forward:
"What's this you're writing" asked Pooh, climbing onto the writing table,
"The Tao of Pooh" I replied,
"The how of Pooh asked Pooh, smudging one of the words I had just written,
"The TAO of Pooh," I replied, poking his paw away with my pencil,
"It seems more like the OW! of Pooh", said Pooh, rubbing his paw,
"Well, it's not", I replied huffily,
"What's it about" asked Pooh leaning forward and smearing another word,
"It's about how to stay happy and calm under all circumstances!" I yelled,
"Have you read it" asked Pooh,
It is a book I can pick up no matter what my mood and find a passage in it to smile about.
Funny thing, after reading it and I have many times, I develop this strange habit of looking at people and deciding if they are an Owl, Rabbit, Piglet, Tigger, Eeyore or Pooh and finding it easier to deal with them.
. . I personally think this is a fantastic method of teaching Taoist principals to any layman, I was unknowing of Taoism at first, but this book, with it's characterized examples, has given me a great food for thought on the subject.
On a side note, I love how Hoff writes as if he's talking to Pooh Bear directly, And maybe he is He certainly channeled the character very well, Bravo! The Zen, the Tao, the beautifully simplicity of a quiet, accepting mind, sitelink
Benjamin Hoff ardently tries to explain Taoist teachings of Lao Tzu and Eastern Philosophy in Western terms with the help of characters created by A.
A. Milne.
The author tells us how to be pragmatic and deal with the problems in our life with ease to lead a pleasant life.
This book will help us to remove our profligate behavior and pessimism, Unlike most selfhelp books which are written in prosaic preachy rhetoric that should be rebuked, this book elucidates the concepts of Eastern philosophy in a simple yet effective manner that should be revered.
It will help us to become a better version of ourselves,
What I learned from this book
What should we do when things are not going our way
If things are not going the way, we planned we would feel restless.
The author tells how to deal with the situation perfectly, "Things just happen in the right way, at the right time, At least when you let them, when you work with circumstances instead of saying, 'This isn't supposed to be happening this way,' and trying harder to make it happen some other way.
"
Why is it important to get out of our comfort zone
sitelink
If we try to deal with everything in our lives safely without taking any risks in our comfort zone, we are not going to achieve anything.
We should have to take some risks if we want to achieve something in our life, The only thing we should be careful about is that we should never gamble in our life, and we should be able to demarcate the narrow line between taking risks and gambling vividly.
"The playitsafe pessimists of the world never accomplish much of anything, because they don't look clearly and objectively at situations, they don't recognize or believe in their own abilities to overcome even the smallest amount of risk.
"
How can a disease save your life
The author says that if you know what is wrong with your health and live your life according to it, you will have a longer life.
If you think that you are perfectly healthy and neglect your weaknesses, you will have a shorter life, So a disease or weakness or limitations will do you a big favor if you acknowledge its existence, "One disease, long life no disease, short life, "
My favourite three lines from this book “The wise know their limitations the foolish do not.
” "Do you really want to be happy You can begin by being appreciative of who you are and what you've got.
"
“To
attain knowledge add things everyday, To attain wisdom remove things everyday, ”
What could have been better
Apart from the author's cuteness and witty writing style, there are some problems in this book that some of us won't like.
If you have read books written by Ayn Rand, you might be familiar with the concept of individualism, Some studies show us that there is an increase in narcissism seen in some cultures following individualism, They are saying that it, in turn, has led to a Narcissism Epidemic, Individualism vs. Collectivism vs. Narcissism is a highly debatable topic that needs more profound understanding,
We can see the author saying to stop listening to disturbing news in a way similar to some of Ayn Rand's controversial philosophies.
It was written in an alarming way which might discourage the empathetic behavior of people, This behavior, in turn, might even cause an increase in the Narcissism epidemic, It will be difficult for many people to digest what the author tried to tell here,
Rating
/ This is a simple charming book that most of you will enjoy reading.
''The Tao of Pooh' by Benjamin Hoff left me feeling a bit as if I was being reprimanded for being a reader who sometimes spends time examining my life.
The book uses stories from sitelinkWinniethePooh to illustrate basic Tao philosophy in what Hoff hopes is a cute and instructive manner, and maybe winsomely attractive enough to convince us, gentle reader.
However, instead I felt as if I was being asked to live my life with the confidence and supposed mentality of a trustfund recipient of a major fortune! Live on air and watch birds! Life can be simple if one doesn't chase down food, shelter and things! Be true to yourself at least, if that self is complacent about working at staying alive and healthy.
Don't worry, be happy! I felt the Tao philosophy might work if I could photosynthesize light and water into food like plants do.
Plus, there are a lot of assumptions about knowledge and intellectualism, and their linkages to, or rather, lack of, compassion and genuine happiness.
Perhaps I am being too literal, gentle reader, Listening to birds does sooth my inner nature, Until my stomach growls. Hoff's answer is to sing, "Sing ho for the life of a bear!" Usefulness can be stupid and selfevaluation may be overrated Living in continuity with one's inner self will bring fame and fortune naturally in accordance with your inner nature, if one empties oneself of all needs, and thus make discontent impossible Don't fuss yourself over necessities or wants Don't be Rabbit, Piglet, Tigger, Owl, Eeyore The things we need are already there Desperation is from wanting or needing life's necessities
Well, yes.
I actually need food, water, clothes, So far in my life, satisfying hunger doesn't mean I usually equate satisfying my hunger with selfrespect or lack of same.
The process of a journey isn't any more necessary than the end of a journey, teaches Hoff, The Great Nothing is Something, Empty mind wins nothing, which is the success of living Tao, because the mind is not stuffed full of cleverness and knowledge.
Music is the silence between notes, Emptiness is the fulfilment of existence, Emptiness is Wisdom. Lack of awareness of body and senses will find the Way, the Source, to be Awake and clearminded, Like a child, empty of everything
Hoff sees Pooh as meeting the perfection of Tao because he has nothing inside and outside.
Nothing there, there. Nothing which is Something, of course, under Tao beliefs, Not is Cool.
Um. No. Not.
I prefer A, A. Milne's version of Pooh rather than Hoff's version of Pooh, .
Fetch The Tao Of Pooh Crafted By Benjamin Hoff Accessible In Document
Benjamin Hoff